To what extent are the evaluation of an achievement and the distribution of rewards among achievers determined by the evaluator's cognitive structure? The research proposed here examines achievement evaluation and reward distribution from a cognitive-developmental perspective. Cognitive development is indexed in one study by age, and in another by level of moral judgment as determined by the Kohlberg interview measure. In both studies, children are given information about the effort level and outcome on a task of two other supposed subjects and asked to distribute rewards between them. The data will reveal the relative use made of effort information and outcome information and will permit inferences about whether subjects are using a norm of equity, equality, or neither. Cognitive-developmental theory suggests two hypotheses: first, that the weight given to effort information increases with age and stage; and second, that a stage- related shift takes place from a self-interest norm to an equality norm to an equity norm. The proposed studies are expected to further the formulation of a developmental attribution theory as well as to provide a concrete behavioral test of an important aspect of the cognitive- developmental theory of moral judgment. The results may well have implications of interest to educators as well.